


Small Changes

by yangxstevens



Category: Grey's Anatomy
Genre: F/M, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-05
Updated: 2021-02-05
Packaged: 2021-03-16 15:47:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,659
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29209854
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yangxstevens/pseuds/yangxstevens
Summary: He looked up just as she closed the door in his face, yelping in clear surprise. “Ohmigod! Alex!”He wasn’t expecting that. He stood in front of the door, trying to turn the knob but she had swiftly locked it. He hadn’t gotten a good look at her from the angle he was at but something was clearly up. “Izzie?”Just another one shot featuring Alex and Izzie cuteness and fluff!
Relationships: Alex Karev/Izzie Stevens
Comments: 3
Kudos: 18





	Small Changes

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for all the love lately. My muse still seems to be around so I would expect more posts. Again, this was just a random thing that popped in my head and ended up here. Enjoy! <3
> 
> P.s this was NOT at all inspired by Katherine Heigl's dark hair in her latest Netflix series ;)

Small Changes

Alex walked into the bedroom, tossing his jacket onto the bed haphazardly. He was over work and everyone there. He had finally gotten everything under control after a twelve hour shift. Everything that could possibly go wrong during that time frame did. A patient would be perfectly stable and then the next minute they would suddenly be coding. He performed two c-sections and both mothers began hemorrhaging but luckily he was able to delegate with the second peds attending. The guy was quick and sharp on his feet but he wasn’t anything like Arizona. 

Despite everything that went wrong, he was able to end the shift with zero casualties and several healthy kids, mothers and newborns so overall, he’d call it a success. Still, he was exhausted and all he wanted to do was go home and spend some time with his wife. 

He was pleasantly surprised when he pulled in to see her car parked in the large gravel driveway. Both kids were on a playdate with their friends from the daycare so he didn’t have to worry about them until later. His original plan was to just crash in the bed but he had better and much more enjoyable ideas now. 

He walked towards the bathroom, assuming she was in there. “Iz, my shift is finally over.”

He looked up just as she closed the door in his face, yelping in clear surprise. “Ohmigod! Alex!”

He wasn’t expecting that. He stood in front of the door, trying to turn the knob but she had swiftly locked it. He hadn’t gotten a good look at her from the angle he was at but something was clearly up. “Izzie?”

“You weren’t supposed to be home until later,” Izzie called from behind the door. He could hear the uneasiness in her voice.

“I got off early,” Alex replied. “What’s going on? Why’d you lock me out?” He jiggled the doorknob in his hand. “What? Are you hiding a guy in there or something?”

He could hear her laugh from behind the door. “Are you kidding me? Of course I’m not cheating right now.” She paused and he waited for the explanation he assumed she’d provide. 

“Then why did you nearly break my nose shutting the door?” Alex asked, knocking on the wood with his fist. “Iz?”

He could hear commotion from inside their bathroom. She was clearly pacing or something. “I did something really stupid.”

He paused. That didn’t provide him with a lot of information. “Okay…” he trailed off, scanning the bedroom for a clue as to what had her so stressed. “Did you kill someone? Cause I’ve had a really long day and I don’t feel like hiding a body.”

“No. I didn’t kill anybody.” She went quiet before continuing in a rant. “I shouldn’t have listened to that young girl. What was I thinking? I don’t know what I was thinking.” He could hear more movement. 

“What did you do? What’s wrong?”

“I...I uh...I dyed my hair,” Izzie whispered. “I freaking dyed my hair because I was talking to this teen girl who was my patient today and she told me that’s the new thing. She talked up this stupid self hair dye kit and now...god, I’m so stupid. Why would I do this?”

Alex couldn’t help but chuckle. 

“Hey! This is not funny,” Izzie retorted. “It’s really not.”

“It kind of is. Here I thought something was really wrong,” Alex commented. “Let me see it.”

“Absolutely not!” Izzie called back, clearly thinking the very suggestion was stupid. “No way. You’re not seeing me like this.”

“Iz, I’m your husband,” Alex reminded. “I’m sure you look great now let me see.”

“I don’t look great,” Izzie sighed. “I don’t even look like me. I look ridiculous. I should have never listened to that girl.”

“Come on. I bet you look fine,” Alex assured, knocking on the door again. “Come on, I wanna see you. What is it anyway? Purple? Pink? You’d totally pull off pink.”

She was quiet again and he figured she was probably starting at the new color in the mirror. She finally found her voice, low and filled with regret. “Brown. I’m a brunette.”

“Can I see?” Alex asked again. “I’m sure it looks great. Let me see.”

“You can not see,” Izzie replied defiantly. “You’re never gonna see this. Ever. Nope.”

He laughed against the door. “Iz, how am I not gonna see it? We’re married. We live together. You can’t lock yourself in our bathroom forever.”

“I know,” Izzie sighed. She raised her voice. “I can wear a hat. Hats are cute.”

“You’re gonna wear a hat all the time? Even at work? In our home?”

She paused, clearly thinking it over. “It could be a fashion statement. I could start a new trend.”

“Come on Izzie. Your hair isn’t the only thing that makes you good looking.” He rested his head against the door. “You don’t even need hair. You looked hot bald. I’m sure you look hot now.”

“I look ridiculous,” Izzie repeated. “I look really ridiculous. I don’t know what I was thinking when I did this. Why did I think this was a good idea? I’m not young or hip enough to pull this off.”

Alex didn’t know what he could say to get her to open the door. He was curious and he really wanted to see her new look. He didn’t doubt that she looked good but he wanted to see it. He was the man she loved after all. “The wig. You looked good in that and it was brown.”

He heard her scoff from behind the oak. “You hated that wig and I know you did because you told Cristina and Meredith to act like it looked good.” She paused, clearly collecting bottles from the countertop. “I know Alex. They told me. Girls talk.”

He couldn’t argue that. He loved Izzie but the wig her mother gave her was pretty awful. It didn’t make her any less beautiful but it wasn’t the best decision either. “It’s not that I didn’t like the color. The color suited you but the wig...it was just a crappy wig Iz.”

“That wig was a light brown,” Izzie emphasized. “What I did was a big dark mistake.” She huffed. “This is why I stress bake when I’m going through something. The only mess I leave is an explosion of flour instead of dark hair dye all over the bathroom. At least with that I get a delicious treat at the end of it and now all I have is a big regret and slight embarrassment.”

He sighed, lightly banging his head on the door. “Izzie, I’ve had a really long day and I came home to talk to you, not the door. If I wanted to get this intimate with a door...I wouldn’t have left the hospital.” He tried to turn the knob again. “Let me see you. I know you probably think I’m gonna hate it or something and who knows...maybe I will. Maybe it’ll be hideous.”

“Alex,” Izzie groaned.

He chuckled. “If I see it, I can be straight with you. Don’t you need to hear that? Please let me see this mid life crisis?”

“God, it is a mid life crisis,” Izzie muttered, her voice muffled by her hands. “That girl convinced me that it’s the new trend and then before I knew it…I was here and dying my hair. She said it would help me look less old which by the way...is just an insult. I’m not old. Well, I’m not young but I’m not old either!” 

“Iz, of all people in the world...you don’t have to convince me that you’re good looking,” Alex replied. “Seriously, you’re killing me. Open the door so I can see it.”

“No,” Izzie retorted. “You’re never seeing me like this. Not until after my salon appointment next week. Until then, I’m hiding it from you...from anyone.”

“Everyone dyes their hair Iz. Mere did it. It’s a thing chicks do and I think you’re overreacting to this.” He paused. “Of course I can’t confirm that since I haven’t seen it yet. Maybe if I did...I could understand the issue?”

The room was silent for a second before he heard her audibly sigh. He heard her feet shuffle against the tile and he could sense she was standing right behind the door. “You promise you won’t laugh?”

“I’m not the one who laughs at the worst timing,” Alex teased.

“You’re not helping.”

“Okay. Okay. Yes. I won’t laugh,” Alex assured. “Now hurry up. Let me see.”

He heard her huff again and then the door was slowly opening. He peeked behind her and saw the bottles of dye on the counter, dark stains smeared in the sink. She stared at her sparky toenails, wearing one of his baggy old t-shirts that was now stained with a pair of grey sweatpants. Her natural curly hair framed her face, but it was now dark brown. 

He just stood there, taking her in. He reached out and threaded his fingers through it, tilting his head.

“You hate it,” Izzie mumbled, filling the silence. She looked up at him and he recognized the vulnerability in her dark eyes. At first he thought she was just being dramatic about the whole thing but now he realized how worried she really was about his opinion. 

He shook his head, smirking as he continued to play with the dark strand. “It’s hot. You’re hot.”

She tried to hide the smile that tugged at her lips but she couldn’t. She blushed as she glanced back down. “You have to say that. I’m your wife.”

“That’s true,” Alex shrugged. “But that doesn’t mean it’s not true.” 

She looked him in the eyes, the familiar gleam returning to her eyes. “You really like it?”

He nodded. “It matches your eyes.” He cringed at how girly that sounded but he didn’t take it back because it was true. She had beautiful dark eyes and it complimented the hair. 

She sighed, letting the tension evaporate as she played with the collar of his shirt. “So you’re not gonna divorce me over this?”

He laughed. “Nah. I think I’ll keep you around.” He slipped his hand around another strand of it, brushing his thumb against the silky surface. “You really can pull off any look can’t you?” He watched her roll her eyes with a smile before asking the next question. “Do you like it?”

Izzie shrugged, glancing down at the hair he was playing with. “I don’t know. It’s different.” She looked back up at him with questioning eyes. “Do you like it better than the blonde?”

He pulled back, glancing at her skeptically. “I can’t win no matter how I answer that Iz.”

“I’m serious. You can tell me,” Izzie smiled, batting her eyelashes at him. “Be honest.”

He looked away for a second. The truth was, he had an answer but he knew that this was a risky game. No matter what he said, he’d risk hurting her feelings but he couldn’t lie to her when she was looking at him that way. “Honestly? I think you look really freaking hot with this look and I do not think that any hair color changes your beauty or how I feel for you…”

Her face dropped and she took a step back. “So you like the blonde better?” He detected the genuine fear in her voice and he hated that she thought a hair color was the only thing keeping him in Kansas. Her looks never mattered to him. 

“Iz,” Alex whispered, gripping her arm before she could disappear back into the bathroom. “Listen. I love you and I could care less about your hair color...hell even if you had hair. I love you for you...despite your looks.”

Her eyes expanded and her whole body tensed. 

He immediately shook his head. “No. Crap. I didn’t mean it like that.” He sighed. He really was awful at this stuff even years later. “That came out wrong. What I’m trying to say is that I don’t just love you for how you look. I love your personality...all your cute quirks and yes, I am so incredibly lucky I married this hot of a model but your looks don’t change how I feel about you. They never will but blonde Izzie is the girl I fell in love with. She’s the one I first saw at that stupid intern mixer. She’s the girl wearing that tight pink dress and giggling at the stupid jokes O’Malley spat out when he was uncomfortable.”

Izzie smiled, touching her hand to his chest. “Wait, you remember what I was wearing?”

He paused at the sudden shift in conversation. He was partially relieved because he didn’t want to stumble with his words anymore. He tilted his head. “Yeah. Of course I do Iz.”

She gazed at him in awe and he didn’t understand why. She shook her head. “I just didn’t think you were the type to remember that stuff.”

“I’m a guy Iz,” Alex replied. “I have eyes and you were an incredibly hot blonde wearing a tight dress so of course I noticed.” He glanced away from her surprised gaze, trying to remember as much as he could from his intern days. “It’s the same dress you wore on our first official date...you know the one where I didn’t kiss you.”

She giggled, shaking her head as she draped her arms around his neck. “You noticed that?”

Alex nodded again, not understanding why this was so out of the ordinary. “Yeah. I noticed. Guys notice. Guys especially notice when they are looking at the girl they love.” He settled his hands on the small of her back. “I remember a lot from those days...good and bad. You’re unforgettable Izzie...Karev.” He smiled. He loved calling her that.

She leaned forward and kissed him before pulling inches away, resting her forehead against his. “I’ll go back to blonde as soon as I can get in the salon.” She cut him off before he could protest anymore. “I’m making that decision because it’s what I want to do. I like blonde Izzie too.”

He nodded, pressing his lips to the tip of her nose. “If you’re sure that’s what you want.”

“It is,” Izzie returned, scrunching her nose.

Alex moved his hand back into her hair. “Well, I guess I should enjoy brunette Izzie for as long as I can huh?” He kissed her and she laughed the whole time. God he loved her laugh. He smirked at her, glancing towards the bed. “Do you still have that dress?”

She pulled away with a playful look in her eyes. “Yeah. I do.” She bit her lip. “Why?”

He kissed her again, mumbling against her grinning mouth. “Because I want you to put it on so I can take it off. I owe it to intern me.” 

Izzie bursted into laughter. “Alex, the kids will be home any minute.” She swiped her hand at his face, wiping the lipstick off. “And I don’t wear that dress for just any occasion...it has to be special and more importantly romantic…” She leaned closer to his ear. “Plus, that’s a blonde Izzie look but lucky for you...the brunette one is wearing your favorite black lacy bra with the matching bottoms.”

He pulled away, staring at her with passionate eyes. “What are we waiting for then?” 

She pushed him down on the bed so he was sitting on the side. “We better move fast because we have about ten minutes before the kids get home from their friends.”

He tilted his head with a smirk. “Say no more.” He pulled her down on the bed with him as she bursted into laughter.

:::

The end <3


End file.
